XPost: alt.politics.immigration, alt.california.illegals, talk.politics.guns XPost: sac.politics, alt.society.liberalism
Throw them out.
SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) - Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers
conducted operations this week inside federal immigration courts in
Concord and San Francisco, according to attorneys with California
Collaborative for Immigrant Justice.
ICE officers questioned several people and arrested one man on May 21 at Concord Immigration Court, according to witness Cynthia Ashley.
Ashley, who volunteers with Concord Court Accompaniment Program, said,
"The incident shook me to the core. The ICE agents' display of force and
power, and their disdain for the right this man had been given to plead
his case, are beyond comprehension."
Ashley said she was escorted out of the building by security after she
and other volunteers reminded immigrants of their right to remain
silent.
"This is the first time I've seen something like this happen in court,"
said Sergio Jaime Lopez with Contra Costa Immigrant Rights Alliance.
"It's deeply concerning to witness the government use scare tactics in a
space where people are supposed to seek protection. At the end of the
day, one person didn't make it back home to his family. This country was
built on the foundation of rights and due process. On days like this, it
feels like those rights don't exist for everyone."
Homeland Security officials are ramping up enforcement actions in what
appears to be a coordinated dragnet testing out new legal levers
deployed by President Donald Trump's administration to carry out mass
arrests. Trump campaigned on a pledge of mass removals of what he calls "illegals."
A senior spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security told KRON4
on Friday, "Secretary (Kristi) Noem is reversing Biden's catch and
release policy that allowed millions of unvetted illegal aliens to be
let loose on American streets. This Administration is once again
implementing the rule of law. Most aliens who illegally entered the
United States within the past two years are subject to expedited
removals. Biden ignored this legal fact and chose to release millions of illegal aliens, including violent criminals, into the country with a
notice to appear before an immigration judge."
In response to KRON4's questions about ICE operations in the Bay Area
this week, the DHS spokesperson said, "ICE is now following the law and
placing these illegal aliens in expedited removal, as they always should
have been. If they have a valid credible fear claim, they will continue
in immigration proceedings, but if no valid claim is found, aliens will
be subject to a swift deportation."
Immigration courts are run by the U.S. Justice Department. During this
week's operations in San Francisco and Concord, ICE officers asked
people for their names and identification, advocates said.
Immigration court hearings usually last less than five minutes and end
with a judge ordering those who appeared to return in two years to plead
their case against deportation. Rather than set a future court date,
government attorneys can ask judges to drop the case. If an immigration
judge dismisses a migrant's case, that can expose them to an ICE arrest
just moments later as they step out of the courtroom, attorneys
explained.
Milli Atkinson, director of the Immigrant Legal Defense Program of the
Justice & Diversity Center of the Bar Association of San Francisco, said immigrants have a right to due process.
Atkinson said, "In just a few days, we have seen a chilling effect in
court, where those who are complying with very complicated legal
requirements could be denied their opportunity to present their case and
are being threatened with prolonged detention."
Bay Area immigration rights groups are encouraging "power, not panic." Organizations recommend that migrants seek legal advice prior to
attending their court hearings, and they should be aware that missing a
court hearing could result in a deportation order.
https://www.kron4.com/news/bay-area-ice-raids/ice-agents-spotted-in-conco rd-san-francisco-immigration-court-buildings/
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